Your Majesty's money, why don't you engrave my name on it?

Compared to the straw that tried to pierce through his shirt from time to time, the quality of Leslaufer's sleep depended more on his recent activities. Fortunately, just a few days ago, he went to the battlefield and killed a wizard after retreating from the battlefield. These memories were enough to keep him from suffering from insomnia in the short term.

There was no conversation all night. When the two got up and prepared to leave, the villagers who looked like they had not slept for half the night came to see them off. They enthusiastically served breakfast prepared in advance and accompanied Reslaufer and Angarita all the way to the village entrance. When the latter said that they did not want to deal with the army that was fighting, a few men enthusiastically pointed out the nearby route that could bypass most of the mercenaries and go to the next nearest village.

But that’s all. Even they themselves have never walked a longer distance.

Despite their enthusiasm, neither Reslaufer nor Angrita had any doubt that if anyone asked about their whereabouts, the villagers would reveal it without hesitation. But that wouldn't matter. Angrita looked just like any other village girl, even covering her head and face with cloth, making it difficult for anyone to notice her features. Instead, Reslaufer, carrying his greatsword, became a more conspicuous target.

But who would go and cause trouble for a soldier? Soldiers are usually the ones who start trouble.

"Our next move will be much easier," said Leslaufer and Angarita, their route quickly straying from the country road. "According to your original plan, the Marquis should have confirmed by now that Bol had abducted you. A mage's abilities are unpredictable, and if he can't find you easily, he'll quickly give up."

"We can have a little more freedom and find a village or town to rest in every once in a while, instead of constantly trekking through the wilderness."

While nominally, everything within the empire is considered the Emperor's territory, in reality this is not the case. Wild beasts, bandits, undead creatures, monsters, and even dragons often create bloody trouble for the Emperor and his people. Long periods of roaming the wilderness are something even the most seasoned adventurers must avoid.

Angelita nodded, calmly accepting the decision. In fact, she had completely relaxed deep down. This place was far enough away from her father, and even far enough away from the nobles. She felt that now she no longer needed to worry about being caught up and brought before her father or the Grand Duke who opposed her father.

So what's there to worry about?

But there are so many things to worry about.

Her Royal Highness, who had hardly left the palace in the fifteen or sixteen years since she was born, soon realized this one night.

"Leslauf, save me, Leslauf!" The bonfire reflected Angelita's pale face. She huddled in a blanket, looking at the pairs of green, non-human eyes in the darkness in horror.

"What are those? The undead? Or the devil? He's coming to get me! He's coming to take me back!"

"Relax, little girl," Leslaufer stuck his two-handed giant sword into the soil behind Angarita and pressed it down hard to ensure it wouldn't fall and hit the girl. "It's not that serious. Although they are indeed here to catch you, have you ever seen a devil walking on four legs?"

"?"

Angelita looked up in confusion, but could only see the huge guard of the giant sword.

"They're just a few wild wolves," Leslaufer said, drawing his sword from his waist. His voice suddenly changed to a smile. "No big deal. These beasts have been following us for several days. They finally felt that I couldn't protect you, so they took advantage of the dark of the moon tonight to attack you."

"But don't worry, that's just an illusion because they're wild animals. Stay where you are."

In Angelita's eyes, the mercenary seemed to have transformed into a seasoned hunter in an instant. He lowered his body to make his shoulders look less tall and broad. The firelight reflected from the sword swayed slightly in his hand. He slowly approached the three wild wolves in front of him with Leslaufer's steps.

Several large dogs were also approaching him, looking as if they were going to fight to the death with Leslough. As they slowly walked into the range of the firelight, Angelita finally saw the true appearance of these creatures.

It was certainly neither a ghost nor a demon, yet its bony torso and hungry eyes were so ferocious, even more sinister than the demons in books and murals! Was that the look of a wolf?

She had indeed heard someone compare a certain noble to a wolf, but...but compared to a real hungry wolves, they were still far from it!

"Should we...should we run away?" The blanket warmed by the campfire could no longer bring warmth to Angelita. Subconsciously, the girl stood up, her legs trembling as she wanted to turn around and run away.

"Get down!" Leslaufer suddenly roared furiously, and his originally crouching figure suddenly rose up and rushed towards Angelita. The latter had no idea what was going on and was so scared that she sat down on the ground.

A roar that did not come from a human throat brushed past her hair and passed over her head. In a panic, Angelita only saw a flaming sword blade making a muffled sound, and a large amount of blood splashed on her face and body!

The mixture of viscera and plasma bathed Reslaufer, but the mercenary could not care less at the moment. With his sword-holding right hand and the other hand, he lifted the wolf, which was still breathing, over his head and smashed it towards another beast that took the opportunity to pounce on him. He turned around to fight and plunged his sword into the skull of another wolf that attacked from behind.

It’s ruined, all ruined!

Reslaufer screamed in his heart. He couldn't remember the last time he fought. He desperately needed a proper battle! This was one of the reasons why he preferred to be a mercenary rather than an adventurer!

He had spent several days pretending to be weak to the wolves, luring them into attacking, but the princess's sudden movement ruined everything! He had to expose himself in advance, which would make these primitive beasts retreat! That was not what he wanted!

In his rage, Reslaufer became more and more brutal, and he could clearly feel the fear of the wolves rapidly growing in the air - they were ready to escape!

One last job! The last one!

The metal-covered fist smashed the jaw of a wild wolf fiercely. Leslaufer opened his eyes wide and searched desperately in the flickering firelight and darkness. Finally, he outlined the outline of a creature that was obviously larger than the other wild wolves.

"It's too late, it's you!"

Chapter 17 Disease

The leader wolf, who was hiding in the darkness and roaming far away, howled in fear. It used up its limited wisdom and finally found the two humans traveling with their luggage in the wilderness. The man looked tired and weak, and the girl looked weak and tired.

Until the attack tonight, its judgment was correct, even until the man discovered them and prepared to fight!

But why? Why did the situation take a turn for the worse after the woman stood up from behind the huge metal plate, giving them the opportunity to ambush and attack from behind?

The wild wolf couldn't understand the problem. It relied on its keen sense of smell and hearing, and basic group tactics to hunt, but these could not answer its confusion. It could only solve the problem in a more instinctive way - calling its companions to besiege the man who had plunged into the darkness alone.

The wolves' howling continued for most of the night, and even after it died down, it still echoed in Angelita's ears. The black-haired girl stared blankly at the mercenary, whose face had turned dark red. He looked as if he had just been pulled out of the water. He slowly walked into the warmth of the campfire and stood in front of her.

The pungent smell of blood mixed with other indescribable smells mixed together and violently swept into her nostrils with the night wind.

"Why did you stand up?" Raslaufer asked, his voice hoarse and raspy. "Why do you think I stuck the sword behind you?"

"I... don't know." Angelita shrank her neck. She didn't even know which question she was answering.

"You are an obvious weakness. The wolves will definitely try to use you as a breakthrough point." Leslaufer grabbed a piece of relatively intact wolf skin from the ground and wiped the blood off the sword. "Next time you encounter this situation, do as I say, and I will protect you."

"It's not bad this time, at least you're not running around."

Soon, the only sound between the two was the crackling of the burning material in the fire. Angelita tried to remember Leslaufer's teachings, just like the time in the tomb. However, when she subconsciously tried to delve into the reasons behind it, she felt more and more that something was wrong.

"Restlover, you mean to say they will choose the weak as a higher priority target, right?"

"Yes," the mercenary nodded, "of course they will choose prey that is easier to catch."

"How do they judge whether their prey is easy to catch?"

"Look at the size, the condition, and the health. Generally, animals pay more attention to the height of the shoulders. If you want to avoid them, you can choose to make yourself look as big as possible..."

Leslaufer was about to raise his hands and try to explain to Angelita, but he suddenly frowned: "Why do you ask?"

"I want to know why they targeted me and us," the imperial princess said, looking Reslaufer up and down. "You are much taller than them, right? I'm the only one standing next to you. I can see they are very hungry, but I don't think that's a reason for them to take such a risk."

"Wild animals' intuition is always off."

"The deviation is so great that you went from catching prey to fill your stomach to killing an entire group by yourself?" Brown eyes stared at Reslaufer. "Why? Now it's my turn to ask you!"

"We weren't supposed to encounter them, were we?"

Angelita recalled her own trembling, her cowardice, her powerlessness, and the wolf howls that had not yet completely dissipated, from roaring to wailing - those wild wolves were so powerless, so what about herself, who was regarded as food by them?

"What exactly are you going to do?"

In the pages of the palace books, the bloody conspiracies between the lines appeared before Angelita's eyes. She could list at least more than 20 people who had the motive to do so, including some who she considered to be allies or friends and relatives.

They stood by and watched as I left Magparesh, neither stopping me nor opposing me, and even acquiesced to my departure. So they were waiting here?!

"It has nothing to do with you. Don't think too much about it." Leslaufer raised his eyelids and glanced at Angelita's young face. "Do you think you are still alive today because I can't beat you?"

"It's a personal thing for me - occasionally I need a little fight, a little blood and gore to lift my spirits, all in the interest of fulfilling my responsibilities."

"A little bit of fighting? A little bit of blood?!" Angelita suddenly stood up and pointed at the creatures that died in different ways with trembling hands. "This is a booby trap! This is a trap! You used yourself and me as bait!"

"You lunatic! Are you sick? You are!"

"Am I sick?" Reslaufer sat by the fire, not getting up, but the pressure in his voice seemed to come from above Angelita's head. "Without it, I wouldn't be alive today! I don't even know where I would die! It gave me the identity of a Doppler, allowing me to get more gold coins than ordinary people! It allows me to live better than farmers, citizens, and even minor nobles! You actually call this a disease?!"

"That's because it hasn't killed you yet!" Angelita and the mercenary glared at each other. She didn't feel afraid at all when facing this man, even though he had just killed so many wild wolves that could easily devour her whole. "But if this goes on, I'll definitely be killed by you first!"

This time it was a wolf, what next time? A bear? An owlbear?! She had only seen stuffed animals, but that was scary enough!

"Really?" Raslaufer suddenly chuckled and pretended to lick his lips. "How did you know it would be this way?"

"We were lucky this time and happened to run into a pack of wild wolves. What if we are unlucky next time?"

"What if you're unlucky?"

"You—" Angelita's face turned pale in an instant, "You can't do this! We gave you money!"

"Taking money for work is the style of your Empire's Matt Light Cavalry, not the style of East Inassus." Reslaufer's ice-blue eyes slowly moved along with the girl's trembling with fear. When her fear almost reached its peak, the mercenary laughed out loud, "Look how scared you are!"

"Don't worry! I won't consider this! Even if the day really comes!" Leslaufer turned around, spread out his blanket, and fell down. "Killing is meaningless to me. I need more than just the lives of prey or enemies. People like you who can't even hold a dagger can rest assured."

"Go to sleep quickly, we have to travel early tomorrow morning. These wolf carcasses are enough to persuade the beasts of the night to retreat, but they won't scare the big ones that move during the day."

Chapter 18 Run Faster

Leslaufer fell asleep, and slept soundly, but Angelita could not fall asleep. The strong smell of rust constantly invaded her dreams, and there, the wolves she had just seen fall stood up again, howling around her.

The girl crawled out of the blanket again, her brown eyes gazing at the muscular man who was sleeping across the fire with his back to her.

Do you want to... run away?

A somewhat absurd idea came to her mind. According to Leslaufer's calculations, it would take them at least two days to reach the nearest town. If it were Angelita herself, she didn't know if she could reach it within two weeks.

Besides, how could he be sure the mercenary wouldn't catch up? If he came after her, it would be much easier than chasing her with the guards and mercenaries who were still chasing her. What would be the consequences of running away and being caught? He would...

Angelita was silent, and a more absurd idea replaced the previous delusion. Her fingers involuntarily reached into the boot and touched a small and exquisite dagger.

The dagger's handle was inlaid with a ruby cut by the finest gemsmith in Magopares. It had been placed in the dagger by order of her grandfather, Henry III, as a gift for her first birthday, and it had never left her side since then.

Rathlough looked like he was fast asleep. Could she take him down with this close-fitting dagger? He looked like a demon, but he wasn't. He had only one life.

But… "People like you who can't even hold a dagger steady can rest assured."

The man's words before bed suddenly echoed in Angelita's mind. Her fingers slowly withdrew from the boot. The excitement just now made her blood run cold.

Did he notice it? Had he already noticed it? This is impossible!

But Angarita Matt had to admit that he was right - she couldn't even hold the dagger, or to put it more bluntly, she had hardly ever handled her grandfather's gift like a dagger.

At court, it was more often used as a replacement for a paper cutter or to leave scars on her childhood toys.

Use it to penetrate those armor plates and stab into the opponent's heart? She didn't even know if the dagger was long enough!

In her muddled and chaotic thoughts, Angelita did not fall asleep completely until daybreak. When Leslaufer woke up, he saw the cooled bonfire and the princess with two dark circles under her eyes.

"Insomnia?" Raslaufer raised an eyebrow and asked, completely unaware of his own fault. "If this alone can give you nightmares, perhaps you should return to your palace."

"I won't go back. Compared to that place, this place is nothing—can you give me a drink of water?" Angelita reached out to take the water bottle, took a few big gulps, and then said "Ha!", "I'm thinking."

"That's strange behavior I've never heard of," Reslaufer replied half-jokingly, standing up and starting to pack up his things. "Tell me, what are you thinking about?"

"I can't go on with you," Angelita's words stunned Leslaufer. When he turned around, he met a pair of determined eyes. "In the first few days, I thought we would get along very well, but I found out that I was wrong. I was so wrong."

"I can't stand walking with a madman and asking him to protect me," Angelita said word by word. "This is no longer the palace. I must be able to walk on my own."

"But you can't do it now," Leslaufer stated the fact calmly. "Before I became a mercenary, I nearly died several times in the wilderness. If it weren't for the 'madness' you mentioned, I wouldn't have survived."

"You're right. I can't do it now, and I'm not going to do it by going crazy." Angelita stood up, avoided the hand that Leslaufer extended, and put the blanket into her luggage by herself. "So I need your help."

"Tell me, what should I do?"

Reslaufer raised his eyebrows in surprise, then relaxed. "You're saying you're going to let me be your teacher just to get rid of me? Are you serious?"

"I'm serious," Angelita took a deep breath. "It would be good for you, too. If I—"

"Stop, stop. You don't need to convince me," the mercenary raised his hands in surrender. "Analyzing this and that makes me dizzy. You just need to convince yourself—or maybe you don't need to."

"You can ask me any questions and do anything at the right time. You can even ask me to stay in a certain place for a long time. It doesn't matter, because the contract says that I can get more gold coins by doing so. I only have one request, and that is not to force myself to do something. If you want to give up, do it immediately, or I will force you to let go."

"That will leave you with no final payment."

"The contract requires that you be sent alive out of the empire, and that you remain stable in Inassus for a period of time."

"Don't worry about that. I'm terrified of death, otherwise I would never have left Magparece," the princess replied reluctantly, having been up all night. "Then I have only one request."

"You can test me. When I can survive on my own, I will stay away from you, and you can't get close to me anymore. You will still receive the money. I just want to ensure my own safety."

Angelita's body tensed slightly. She wasn't sure how the other party would respond, although she had no means of countering.

Perhaps he would repeatedly give her tasks she could never complete? Then watch her give up? Eventually, she would never make such a request again? This way, the mercenary could keep her tethered to him, like a pony in a fairy tale, bound to a small stake. Even if it grew big enough to easily break free from the stake and the rope, it would not actively try to escape.

But she wouldn't, she wouldn't. Angelita was very sure of this because she had left the Matt Dynasty court where she had lived for more than fifteen years and didn't want to go back. In a few months, no one would be able to tame her, even if she couldn't even hold a dagger.

"Perhaps that won't be so troublesome. My senses have always been sharp, so I don't need to test you." Leslaufer nodded slightly. "If one day, when I tell you 'begin'."

"Angelita, you can run now. Run fast and don't look back."

Chapter 19 Princess's Dinner

"Just like this."

"But I won't give you time to get your luggage then."

As the sun rose, set, and rose again, the mercenary walked leisurely behind, dragging his giant sword. Only half of his luggage was left on his body, and the remaining half was on the sweaty Angelita who was still jogging stubbornly in front of him.

Her speed was already very slow, but she still had no intention of stopping. This was something she had proposed herself, and it had only been less than two days. How could she easily go back on her word?

"You need to go faster, Angrita," Reslaufer slowly caught up from behind, half a body length ahead of her. "Whether you're an adventurer or a mercenary, you all need to carry bags and armor, and sometimes you have to run and march quickly. At this speed, you'll be left behind very quickly."

"If you can't hold on any longer, just tell me. I'm giving you this weight because you said before that royals eat better than ordinary people and they also have activities like riding, hunting, and tournaments. Actually, I think starting with no weights is a good idea."